Pack Mentality
by SonicPotter
Summary: Carrie Blake is just your normal average British teenager. Only a technicality that she's a werewolf. After being hauled across the ocean to Beacon Hills, where she bumps into some familiar faces and finally finds a pack. STILESxOCxISAAC
1. Places to go, people to see

Chapter 1

My eyes flickered open, as my mind slowly rose through the levels of unconsciousness and brought me into the pale light of morning. I rolled over onto my side and gazed through the soft yellow curtains into the street bellow, whilst my back ached in protest. That's what I get for sleeping on a fouton, I thought to myself. As I pulled myself up and lent back on the pillow, I rubbed my eyes with the palms of my hands, mentally preparing myself for the day ahead. I took a deep breath, shaking out my short hair, climbing off the end of my makeshift bed and grabbing a few clothes, before heading to the bathroom to change and get ready for college. Once changed and ready, I padded down the corridor to the front room to grab breakfast. As I sat down to eat my toast, my mother decided to make an appearance, shuffling behind me and ruffling my blonde mop as she passed. I ducked my head slightly at the contact, earning me mocking 'ooh' from behind me, to which I rolled my eyes.

'What are you doing up this early? 'I said, turning to look at her properly. She seemed a lot more put together than most mornings, not to mention the fact that she was functioning before midday. Her make up was done to its fullest, and she was wearing one of her nicer revealing tops, with a pair of her fancier white trousers. She gave me a slightly bewildered look, before scoffing and turning to the fridge. She pulled out one of her probiotic yoghurt things, downing it in one, shutting the fridge door and 'sneaking' a swig of tequila before turning to answer me. I turned away from her with an inward sigh, continuing to munch on my breakfast.

'Don't be silly, dear. We've got a plane to catch at twelve thirty, we wouldn't want to be late now, would we?' She laughed, her voice as trill and annoying as normal, and yet suddenly what sh'd said sank in. My eyes widened and my head whipped around, as I watched her casually walk around the counter and into the living area of the flat, where three obnoxiously-pink, leopard print suitcases sat somehow hidden in plain site. I couldn't even formulate words for about ten seconds, after which I spoke calmy, trying to get some sense out of her.

'What do you mean, a plane to catch? I have college in an hour, we can't be going anywhere today. ' I said, placing my food back on my plate and trying to keep my cool. She must have been having one of her panic moments, I could normally talk her out of it.

'Well, I wanted to surprise you, but I finally got a permanent acting job!' She exclaimed, clapping her hands together like an excited child, even spinning round in a small circle. Oh dear.

'Really?' I said carefully. She grinned.

'Yes! It's a reoccurring part in an American soap opera, not a *main* role, but it's well payed and I have a contract with them for two years! Isn't that wonderful, honey?' She said with a giggle. I merely gaped at her, in complete disbelief. From the look in her eyes, I could tell she seriously meant it to. And there was going to be no changing her mind, either. So, I took a deep breath, and with a fixed smile, I said-

'Then I guess we've got a plane to catch.'

'So, are you excited about your first day, sweetheart? It looks like a lovely place, doesn't it?' My mum half whispered to me, as we pulled up outside the school I probably wouldn't be at for longer than a month, at most. She was right, though, it did look like a nice place. The building was large, but un opposing, only a few floors high and it seemed rather welcoming. I guessed to most of the students it looked quite bleak, what with the walls under the windows being slightly rain-streaked, giving the effect that the building itself were crying. I smiled encouragingly at mum, seeing her second thoughts beginning to surface in her eyes. She always meant well when she did things like this, and I knew that she always had me in mind, but she never thought them all the way through. This was the biggest thing she'd ever done. And there was no going back to their same old comfy little flat in England.

'I'd better go, don't want to be late on my first day.' I said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek before pulling my bag on my shoulder and getting out of the little silver rent-a-car, turning towards the school. I heard the window roll down behind me, and turned to see my mum leaning over the seat.

'Don't do anything...be careful not to...um...be careful, darling.' She finished weakly. I knew what she meant, though. Don't do anything weird and give away that you're a werewolf. I smiled knowingly and nodded, tapping my nose. She gave a strained smile back, before driving away. I rolled my eyes and began to walk back towards the entrance. I wasn't stupid. We moved around a lot, and so far, I'd never been discovered. I couldn't see why Beacon Hills would be any different.

As I approached the front desk, I couldn't help but notice all the smells and sounds around me, some good, some bad, some repulsive, but all interesting and new. It was kind of exciting. I put on my best, cheerful grin and gave a small cough to clear my throat.

'Excuse me, I'm new here. I was told to come here to get a timetable?' I enquired. The woman behind the desk looked up at me, peering over her small glasses, her eyes flicking between her computer and my face.  
'Carrie Blake?' I said hopefully. Finally the woman smiled at me, handing me a blue piece of folded paper, before pointing down the corridor.

'Welcome to Beacon Hills, Miss Blake, your form room is just down the corridor and to the left, room 14b.' She said, her face warm.

'Thank you very much.' I said with a nod, before heading off down the corridor and looking at the paper as I wheaved between the other students buzzing around me, like walking through a bee hive. I managed to zone it out to a dull hum as I read. First, I decided to find my locker, so I could dump all my unnecessary books that were weighing down my bag. Locker #243. I guessed that was on the second floor, so I headed around the corner in search of some stairs. A piercing bell rang through the halls, somehow they seemed to be louder and more annoying in America. I flinched a little at the noise, but thankfully nothing dramatic enough to bring any attention to myself. After that, the amount of students seemed to drop worryingly quickly, so I quickened my pace, looking from the paper to the numbered lockers around me. The numbers seemed to have gotten a lot higher a lot quicker than I'd expected, so maybe my locker *was* on this floor. I looked back down at the paper again, when suddenly, out of nowhere, someone banged into me with their shoulder, spinning me sideways.

'Sorry!' I heard a male voice say.

'Oh, I'm sorry!' I said, blinking a little as I tried to pinpoint the source of my clumsiness, and that's when I noticed the scent. It was strong and strange, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up, the primative animal instinct to protect rising in my stomach, and yet it was sonehow...familiar. I stared in awe at the boy a few feet away from me, amazed by this new smell, which I found was growing on me somewhat. The strange thing was, the boy was staring back at me with a similar look, although he was more confused. We stood for a moment, staring questioningly at eachother, my head instinctively tilting to one side in curiousity. The boy was older than me, and at least a head taller. I doubted I would reach his nose. He had short, dark brown curls covering his head, his hazel brown eyes complimenting his light brown skin. I then noticed another boy standing a little awkwardly next to the one with the fascinating smell. He was taller still, and I had no doubt that I would barely reach his chin. He had even shorter brown hair, his eyes a colour I could only describe as a sort of chocolate, which contrasted nicely with his fair skin. I would have looked at the fair boy longer, but my focus was pulled back to the curly haired one's strange odour. The pale one looked between us, slightly bewildered.

'Scott, c'mon, we gotta go, we're already late.' He said, tugging his friends arm. The aforementioned Scott kept his eyes wearily on me, half turning to his friend and half-heartedly shrugging him off.

'Yeah, I know, I'm just coming...' he said, his sentence trailing off towards the end. His friend looked between us again in disbelief, rolling his eyes. He ducked in front of Scott, blocking me from his view and moving his head into his eyeline.

'Scott, buddy, we are super late right now, and I'm not going to lie, this right here,' he gestured at the two of us with his finger, 'is very weird.' Whilst he said this, I took the opportunity to sneak away quietly, trying to avoid any confrontation from this strange boy. I made it half-way up the corridor, before a voice behind me caused me to stop again.

'Hey, wait!' Scott called, bounding up to me as I turned around, his friend following a few seconds later after a slightly overdramatic head roll. I gave a tentative smile as he approached.

'You're new here, right?' Asked Scott, standing close enough to overpower me with that smell of his, to which I didn't know how to react, except take a small step back. My eyes widened a bit, probably giving me an overall deer-in-headlights look.

'Erm, yes, y-yes I am.' I stuttered, blinking a few times as my brain battled between friendliness and 'this seems like a bad idea'.

'Do you need a hand finding where to go? I mean, homeroom and everything?' He asked, somehow seeming almost as weary as I was. The friend frowned behind him pulling his arm.

'Dude, we seriously don't have tim to roll out the welcome wagon for every random freshman. And this is me saying this.' He insisted. I sort of wished Scott would take his advice, so I could safely leave to ponder over this new discovery's meaning by myself.

'Actually, I think I'm a junior.' I piped up. They both looked at me in disbelief.

'Seriously?' They said, in almost exact unison. It was slightly spooky.

'How old *are* you, exactly?' The friend asked, folding his arms and lowering his head a little, as though trying to hear me better.

'16, 17 in March.' I said with a smile. They looked me up and down, and glanced at each other, before the friend shook his head and turned back to Scott.  
'Okay, well, then, we still don't have time to cosy-up to a newby junior I'm presuming you've never met.' He said.

'C'mon Stiles,' Scott said, 'you should be friendlier to strangers, although I think she, and *I*, may have certain things in common.' He said the last part very deliberately, stating each word clearly, as though it should mean something to "Stiles". What an odd name, I thought, I wonder if it's short for something. Apparently it did have deeper meaning, as after a few meaningful looks were exchanged, Stiles had a very obvious moment of realisation, before trying to compose his expression into an oblivious calm.

'Yeah, no, of course. I'm being rude, I'm sorry. So, need a hand?' Said Stiles, suddenly becoming the picture of welcoming. I narrowed my eyes a little, before dismissing his sudden change-of-tune and smiling gratefully at them.

'Actually, yes. I was going to put some of my stuff in my locker before lessons, but apparently I don't really have time, so I guess I should go to my form room? Only I can't actually recall where it is.' I said, chewing my lip and raising my eyebrows at my forgetfulness. Scott smiled in understanding, glancing down at his feet briefly, whilst Stiles did a sort of mocking tut and sigh, intended as friendly but being too over the top not to be slightly...off. I frowned at him ever-so-slighty, then turned back to Scott.

'So, did the office give you a slip of paper, or...?' Scott asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly. I jumped a little as I remembered that Scott probably wasn't psychic.

'Oh, yeah, um...' I said, rumaging in the pocket of my leather jacket, where I'd frantically shoved the slip when I made my escape attempt down the corridor. I handed him the blue paper, and he glanced at it, before looking up at the classrooms around us.

'You're in luck. You're just over there.' He said, pointing to a room two doors down from us on the left. I grinned happily at the two boys.

'Great!' I said, and Scott gestured to the door. I shoved the paper back in my pocket as we walked, and suddenly felt the nerves kick in, my stomach knotting and unknotting uncomfortably. Scott knocked on the door and opened it without waiting for a reply. My heartbeat sped up a little, and I felt a hand on my back.

'Don't be nervous.' Scott whispered, giving me a small push into the room. I looked back at them, suddenly feeling the need for their protection. Scott smiled encouragingly, and Stiles gave me a thumbs up and a sort of fake smile. I nodded at them, before I turned back to the classroom and walking in with what I hoped was a friendly smile.


	2. Discovered

**Scott and Stiles POV**

They watched from the door as the teacher welcomed the girl into the classroom, and she sat down at a desk a few rows back. She seemed fine, a few students even shaking her hand and introducing themselves. Scott could hear that her heart rate had lowered back to a more normal speed, and she certainly looked more relaxed. Scott smiled. There was something about this girl that he liked. Something about her that made everybody like her, it seemed. The teacher coughed a little, and the boys snapped out of their thoughts and began to walk down the corridor. Stiles glanced back at the open door, before deeming them far enough away to speak freely.

'Her?' He said, his voice still vaguely hushed, stopping Scott and turning him to face him, 'She's one of you? What sicko turned her, she's barely able to walk!'

'I don't know if she was turned, I mean some people are born that way, look at Derek.' Scott replied, his voice matching Stiles' tone. Stiles nodded his head sideways in agreement.

'How can you be sure, though?' He asked.  
'Stiles, I could smell it over her!' Scott replied, pulling Stiles along the corridor to their lesson. 'We have to keep an eye on this kid, she could cause some kind of trouble.'

'Seriously, that kid? I doubt she's going to be much of a problem, the girl's harmless.' Stiles replied. 'And kind of adorable.' He added, shrugging. Scott rolled his eyes.  
'Hey, you think Derek knows she's here?' Stiles said, slapping the back of his hand into Scotts stomach.

'Probably, he'd have smelt it a mile off.' Said Scott, as they entered their class and sat down, giving the necessary apologies and excuses. Stiles leant over to Scotts desk.

'So what are we going to do? We can't just let snuffles wander round doing whatever she wants.' He whispered. Scott raised his eyebrows in agreement and nodded, glancing to the front of the room.

'We'll talk to her, at lunch, maybe we could form some sort of alliance. But Stiles, I've got to work what's different about her.' He said, his brow furrowing a little. Stiles frowned.

'Different, what do you mean, different?' He asked. Scott sighed to himself.

'She just didn't smell like a...y'know, she smelt...different.' he said. Stiles just looked blankly at him. 'Look, all werewolves smell slightly different, like the different ranks. Y'know, alphas, betas and omegas, they all have a different scent, it's how we tell the difference.' He explained. Stiles nodded along, taking in what he said. 'But her, she smelt...weird. She's not normal, or at least nothing Derek's told me about. I need to find out what it is.'

**Carrie PoV**

I managed to befriend some people in lessons, some marveling at my accent, others commented on my haircut. Suffice to say, when it came to lunch break and I entered the cantine, a few faces smiled at me, beckoning me over. One I did not expect, however, was the junior from that morning, Stiles. This time, though, his smile appeared genuine, as he waved at me to join him. He whacked the boy next to him, who turned out to be Scott. Stiles pointed to me, and Scott joined in with the smiling and waving. I grinned back at them, walking over to sit down. Stiles scootched over on the bench and patted the now empty seat between the two of them, to which I nodded and sat. I suddenly felt a little intimidated sitting between them, with the strange sense Scott had about him, and the fact that both boys were so much bigger than me. But they were being friendly to me, so I was going to be friendly to them. Stiles turned to me.

'So, how was your first day? Didn't get lost too many times?' He asked, shoving a few cafeteria chips into his mouth, as I pulled a bottle of fruit flavoured vitamin water. Something my mum bought on a wim. I chuckled to myself.

'Yeah, once or twice.' I admitted. 'Although this school seems to be full of nice people. Someone was always willing to help me.' Stiles raised his eyebrows and turned his head a little, scoffing to himself. I frowned slightly, but brushed it off. 'Overall, though, yeah, it was a good day. The lessons weren't too bad, the teachers are friendly enough, I met some nice people.' I continued, nudging him slightly with my elbow and smiling at him, turning to Scott with the same expression. _As I turned my head away from Stiles, though, I could have sworn I saw him blush._ They both smiled back at me, and Scott turned and leant an elbow on the table, looking at me slightly oddly.

'Hey, we never got your name earlier.' Said Stiles, looking questioningly at me.

'Oh right! I'm Carrie.' I said with a smile, extending a hand towards him.

'Stiles.' He said, returning the smile and shaking my hand.

'I'm Scott.' Said Scott, as I turned to him, and he gave my hand a little shake, before continuing to look at me for a moment.

'So, you're from Britain then. What sort of friends did you have over there?' He asked, innocrently. I tilted my head to the side, slightly confused at his question.

'Um, well, they were nice, I guess. I didn't really have a close group of friends, I just got along with everyone, really.' I replied, before taking a bite of sausage roll. I smiled to myself at the fact it was still warm. Scott nodded to himself, as though he were taking my answer into consideration. I raised one eyebrow slightly, but simply shrugging and continued eating, waiting for the other questions that would undoubtedly follow.

'How do you feel about cats?' Stiles piped up, looking at me over his shoulder. I looked at him quizzically. It was a pretty weird thing to choose as your first question to someone. I chuckled nervously.

'Um, I don't hate them, I guess? Our old neighbour had one, and it was nice enough. It was quite obedient after a while.' _Yeah, once I did some dominence assurting after it scratched me, _I thought to myself with a small smile. He nodded, looking back down at his food for a moment.

'How about rabbits? Or dogs?' He asked, giving me a sideways glance, his eyes connecting with Scott for a moment. I looked between them, catching Scott glaring weirdly at Stiles for a second, before he quickly put on a fake smile. I brushed it off again, determined to remain friendly and unsuspicious.

'I guess I like most animals.' I replied trying to distract from whatever telepathic argument Scott and Stiles were having. 'I love dogs, though. They always seem to like me.' I continued, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand and brushing off my fingers.

'Awesome. Hey, Scott, don't _you_y. The work at the vet?' Stiles said to Scott, seeming quite surprised. He turned to me again, as though having an epiphany. 'If you ever wanted a job, I bet Scott could get you something there.' My eyes lit up, as I turned to Scott eagerly. He was wearing what was probably a fake grin.

'Wow, really? That would be great!' I said, smiling widely at Scott.

'Yeah, sure. Erm, how about you come with me _and Stiles_' he said, looking pointedly past me at Stiles as he did, 'y. The lessons weren't too bad, the teachers are friet my boss, I guess.' I grinned happily, nodding in agreement and turning back to my bag, retrieving a blackberry yoghurt and small plastic spoon. As I began to eat it, two girls sat down across from us. One of them had strawberry blonde hair, piercing hazel eyes, and a slightly terrifying aura about her, looking at me with slight confusion and annoyance. The other seemed more friendly, her dark brown hair pinned up out of her face, showing her welcoming dark eyes. I looed up at them with big eyes, giving a small smile.

'So, is she related to one of you, or is she a new pet of Dereks?' She said, propping her elbows on the table and resting her head on her interlaced fingers, staring me down. I blinked, slightly shocked by her intensity, and then her question made me think. Pet of Derek? What did that mean? All I could gather from her question is that I probably wasn't welcome in her eyes. I shifted uncomfortabley in my seat a little, as the other girl nudged her, frowning at her.

'Lydia!' The dark haired girl exclaimed.

'What?' Said Lydia, rolling her eyes. 'There's no other reason for her being here.' She folded her arms, still glaring at me. Suddenly a thought popped into my head. _Derek's "pets". Do I like dogs. what were my friends like in Britain. The only reason I'm here. Scott's strange scent. Holy crap._ My mind went into panic, and I tried to act oblivious.

'Uh...what ever do you mean?' I said, looking more shifty than before. Lydia tolled her eyes again, and Scott glanced around him, before turning to me, blocking me from one side of the cafeteria.

'Look, I know what you are-' he began, before I whipped my head around in panic.

'You know?!' I hissed back. No one had ever found me out, and now two boys had managed it in one day? Did they have super powers or something?

'-but it's okay! Like I said,' his eyes flashed yellowy gold for a second and my eyes widened, 'we have something in common.' Did this mean? Oh my God!

'Wait, so you're...? Oh my God!' I exclaimed, throwing my arms around Scott's neck and full out hugging him. He jumped a little in shock, before chuckling and returning it. Everyone else laughed a little too, even the terrifying Lydia. I pulled away from him, a thought occurred to me.

'Wait, we are talking about...werewolves, right?' I said, my voice quiet. They laughed again, and this time I joined in.

'Yep, Scott's one of the furry boys.' Said Stiles. Scott reached behind me and slapped Stiles on the back of the head.

'So, is it just you then, or...?' I said to Scott, looking around the group. They looked at each other a little awkwardly, almost avoiding my eye contact. Scott turned to me.

'No. There's Isaac too...and Derek.'

**Okay, so I know there may be one or two differences in this chapter from the last one, but just to clarify, Carrie has just turned 16, and is in freshman year (if I've got the ages right for the american education system) and this is now a StilesXOCXIsaac story :) thanks for the reviews, I hope you guys continue to enjoy this.**


	3. Anticipation

As the bell rang for the end of the day, Scott pulled Stiles away from his desk and out of the room, before anyone else had stood up, and before Stiles had a chance to properly pick up his bag. Once they were in the corridor, Scott released his arm and coninued walking with purpose towards the front entrance. Stiles stumbled over his own feet for a moment, as he hauled his trailing bag from the floor and onto his shoulder, running to catch up with him.

'Woah, Scott, slow down, school ended like, two seconds ago, she's not going to beat us there.' Stiles said, as they pushed open the double doors at the end of the hall. Scott leapt down the steps two at a time, while Stiles desperately attempted to keep up, until he finally stopped at the Jeep. He stared intently at the stream of students that flowed out of the exits, scanning the crowds for any sign of the small blonde. Stiles looked at him, before sighing and opening the driver door, chucking his bag in the back.

'Dude, come on, relax. She'll be here any second. I mean, what are you expecting her to do, sneak out the back any go face Derek by herself? No, she's not that dumb, she'll be here.' Scott glanced at him, and sighed with a nod, but he still couldn't quite relax until he saw Isaac and Carrie come through those doors.

Stiles was right. Isaac leant patiently against the wall by the door of a classroom, exactly where Scott had asked him to pick up the new kid. Basically, he wanted him to babysit and make sure she didn't run off and do something stupid. He didn't really mind, it was something to take his mind off all the crazy that had been going on recently, what with Erica and Boyd, and that strange girl who saved him. Inside the classroom, Carrie was packing away her books and pens with antripidation. All she could think about all day was _there are other werewolves here there are other werewolves here__** there are other werewolves here. **_The thought filled her with both excitment and nerves. She hadn't encountered another werewolf since her dad died when she was six, she had no idea what to expect or what they'd think of her. She slung her bag strap over her head, and made her way towards the door. As she walked through the door way, a voice caused her to jump and twurl to face the danger.

'Hey, are you Carrie?' The voice said. Carrie was faced with a rather tall, slightly lanky boy. He had light brown, curly hair that framed his long, sharp face and brilliant blue eyes. She was ever so slightly taken aback by his appearance. He was both intimidating and beautiful, and Carrie's brain couldn't quite take it in. She then realised she'd probably left to big a pause, and stumbled over her words to make up for it.

'Are, yes, I, er, certainly do, I mean, that is to, erm..yes.' she said, trying to recover at the end of the sentence by standing "casually" with her hands on her hips and putting on a nervous, hopeful grin. The boy smiled a little at her awkward moment, nodding his head down the corridor.

'Scott wanted me to take you to him, something about you getting lost again?' He said. Carrie pulled a face at the comment and nodded, before giving a half smile at her own stupidity. He began to walk off down the corridor, and when he couldn't see her, Carrie bent at the knees a little and raised her fists slightly in mock-triumph at the fact that this guy was a werewolf aka she would probably be spending more time with him, before grinning and jogging to catch up. Carrie shoved her hands in her the pockets of her burgandy hoodie, raising her shrugging her shoulders as she took a deep breath and smiled hopefully.

'Soo...you're my escort then?' She said, grinning a little cheekily at this new face.

'Yeah, I guess I am.' He said, looking at his feet and chuckling to himself. He looked up at her and extended a slender hand. 'I'm Isaac, by the way.'

'Charmed.' Carrie replied, vamping up the British a little and shaking his hand. She noticed he had quite a firm, comforting grip, and took a moment to decretely catch his scent. It was similar to Scott's, but somehow...different. She still wasn't sure about the difference between types of werewolf, despite her father sitting her down and explaining it before...well, anyway, she guessed he was a different rank or something. It was pleasent though, in a rugged, earthy kind of way. She could probably inhale it all day. Which was probably a good thing, as she guessed he'd be around her a lot. Hopefully. They continued to walk leisurely through the other students, weaving in and out of the crowds, making comfortable small talk as they went. Isaac caught hold of her shoulder to keep her in his sight, and stopping her from getting lost in the crowd.

Scott lifted his head, whacking Stiles, who was leaning on the bonet next to him, his head slumped in his hand.

'Hmm, what?' Stiles said, snapping out of whatever daydream he was having, and saw Isaac and Carrie laughing companionably as the walked out of the school. He frowned, a weird feeling balling up in his stomach, which he ignored. 'Great, now we can leave, and you can chill out.' Scott nodded, remaining tensely at the front of the Jeep. Stiles lolled his head back, grabbing Scott's shoulders from behind.

'Scott, seriously, relax. Derek's not going to bite her head off.' He said, as Stiles sat down on the hood next to him.

'It's not Carrie I'm worried about. He's more likely to do that to me for taking her to his place.' Scott replied. They sat for a moment, thinking about the truth behind that statement, before Stiles folded his arms and glanced at the floor. He looked up again at the pair walking towards them.

'Have we decided how we're all getting there, by the way?' Stiles said "casually", still staring at Carrie and Isaac. 'I mean not everyone's going to fit in the Jeep, and you've got your bike, so..' Scott nodded, thinking to himself as to the best way to do it.

'How about Carrie goes with the safe, non-tempermental human in the Jeep, and Isaac goee with you?' He helpfully suggested. 'Or, maybe, I could give Isaac a ride and Carrie could go with you?' Scott gave him a weird look, before turning back to greet the other two werewolves.

'Hey, guys. So, who's coming with me and who's going with Stiles?' Scott asked. Carrie's ears picked up, and her whole face seemer to brighten with hope.

'Ooh, can I go on your bike?!' She said excitedly, bouncing on her toes a little, her hands clenched tightly. Isaac chuckled at her, whilst Stiles gave a small laugh to himself and Scott merely grinned. Despite his nerves, Scott couldn't help but like the kid. She was adorable and there was something about her that made you kind of...like her. It was like you just wanted to wrap her up and make sure nothing ever hurt her.

'Yeah, sure.' Scott said. Carrie threw her fists in the air with joy, grinning widely with bright eyes. Scott smiled at her again, before looking to Isaac. 'You cool with going in the Jeep?' Isaac nodded, a little down that he couldn't talk more with the young girl, but still giving a small smile. Scott nodded at him, before turning back to Carrie.

'C'mon, I think there's a spare helmet in the back of the jeep.' He said, walking around the car to the passenger side. Carrie grinned, delighted, looking between the other two boys before following Scott. Isaac and Stiles watched as Carrie donned a black helmet, that probably belonged with a mo-ped rather than Scott's bike, and climb on the back behind Scott. She gave them a wave, before hugging Scott round the middle as they drove off. The boys waved back, staring after them.

'She's a special kid, isn't she?' Said Isaac, still looking after the bike. Stiles glanced at him.

'Yeah. She is.' He replied, looking back at the road again for a moment.

'C'mon, Wolverine, we'd better get after them.' Stiles continued, turning back towards the Jeep and opening the driver door. Isaac frowned as he followed him.

'Right, so are you saying I'm like the muscular, indestructable X-man, or a probably muscular member of the armed forces? Neither of which has anything to do with wolves, but I am flattered.' Isaac said with a grin. Stiles shrugged.

'You're a good looking guy, you deserve to know that.' He said, with a straight face, looking Isaac dead in the eyes. Isaac looked away with a roll of the eyes, climbing into the passenger side.

**Carrie's POV**

As we barrelled through the streets, my hands firmly around Scott's waist, I took the opportunity to look at the surrounds, although my attention was constantly brought back to how much fun being on a motorbike was. At one point I dared lift my arms in the air, rollarcoaster style, before Scott yelled at me to hold tight.

'Relax, if anything happened I'd just heal anyway.' I yelled back with a smile, but I reattached my hands around Scott again to put his mind at rest. After a while, we pulled into what seemed to be more of a back street, and we stopped outside a fairly worn down apartment building. As I climbed off the bike and removed my helmet, I stared up at the bleak structure, wondering why this mysterious alpha Derek would live here. Truthfully, I was a mixture of excited and nervous about the iminant encounter, as the last werewolf, let alone alpha, I'd seen before entering America was my father, and he'd been dead since I was six. I wasn't sure on how to feel, or what to expect. I moved to enter the only aparent door, only to be held back by Scott's arm. I looked at him quizzically.

'We should wait for the others get here.' He said apologetically, to which I nodded. I sat down on the floor and carefully leant against Scott's bike. I rumaged around in my leather shoulder bag before producing my much loved tennis ball. It was fairly battered, but somehow still retained it's excellent bounce. I threw it acrose the empty road, where it hit a wall, rebounding off the floor before hurtling back to where I sat. I reached up and caught it with ease, a contented smile on my face. I continued this, and Scott perched on his bike to watch me until the others got there. We didn't have to wait long, but Scott still seemed a little impatient when they pulled up.

'Finally, you took your time.' He said, getting up and walking around the bike to towards the door. Stiles looked a little taken aback, as he and Isaac exited the Jeep and followed him.

'Dude, we were like five minutes behind you.' He said, talking with his hands. I looked up at them, and scrambled to my feet to follow them eagerly, catching my ball mid-air. I bounded over to them, only to be stopped by a restraining hand across the front of my shoulders. I looked up at Isaac with big eyes, to see him looking at the motionless Scott, who was gripping the door handle tightly. Isaac held me in place by my shoulders, as Stiles moved towards Scott.

'Yo, Scott, you still with us buddy?' He said, clicking his fingers in front Scotts face. Scott snapped out of whatever trance he was in, and looked up at Stiles blankly. Stiles raised his eyebrows and gave him a double thumbs up. Scott looked at him and, after a moment, nodded.

'C'mon, seriously, what's the worst that could happen?' Stiles said putting one hand on Scott's shoulder.

'Derek could kill me for bringing an outside werewolf to where he lives?' Scott replied.

'Yeah, there is that.' Stiles admitted. They nodded at each other again, before Scott took a deep breath, opened the door, and they entered the building.

**Sorry this took so long, guys, I've been quite busy with college recently, but you've given me some great feedback, for which I'm super grateful :) reviews are thoroughly enjoyed, so keep them coming, my dears!**

**SP xx**


	4. Derek

We stood in a group, outside the large piece of metal that I assumed was some kind of door. Scott raised his fist to knock, before Isaac interrupted him.

'You're knocking?' He said, and we all turned to look at him. 'You never knock, it's pointless.' Scott shrugged, hand still raised.

'I figure barging in unannounced isn't the way to go this time.' He said, in a quiet voice. Apparently this really was pointless, as the metal in front of us moved out of the way, to reveal a young man standing the other side of it. He was well built, tall, and quite menacing, his bearded face aimed at Scott, his expression somehow a mixture of bored and annoyed. I didn't know how he was doing that with his face, but it was a skill I kind of wanted to learn. Scott reeled a little in surprise, before recovering and giving the man a sheepish grin. Stiles stepped in front of the awkward boy, shielding him from the man's gaze with a wide smile.

'Hey, Derek, how've you been? Are you well? You look well, pal, so, listen-' He said, reaching behind Isaac to were I was stood, pulling me to stand in front of this "Derek", 'we brought you a little something.' Stiles patted me on the head, as I nervously smiled at the man, my eyes wide like a rabbit in the headlights.

I stood, rather uncomfortabley, in the middle of the room, as Derek looked me up and down. I gave a weak smile, before he turned away and walked over to the desk, leaning on it and folding his arms as he looked back at Scott. I relaxed, exhaling properly for the first time since he opened the door, as I began to throw my ball into the air and catch it again. 'Scott, what the hell is this?' Derek said.

'Look, she just turned up at school, and I didn't know what else to do.' Scott tried to explain, before sighing. 'She could've gotten involved with something she shouldn't, and I felt it best that she be where we can keep an eye on her. Keep her out of trouble.' Derek rolled his eyes, as Scott held out his hands in a sort of plea. 'Hey, for all we know, she could actually be helpful in some way. To the pack, I mean.' He continued, clutching at straws slightly. Derek raised his eyebrows, before getting up and walking over to me.

'Hey.' He said, catching my attention and looking me dead in the eyes. It was impossible for me to look away in that moment, the power behind his pupils overwhelming. He caught the ball I was still throwing in the air absentmindedly, examining it for a minute. My eyes locked on my ball, unable to let it out of my sight. Derek noticed this, looking back up at me curiously. He moved the ball from side to side, finding slight amusement in the fact my eyes and head followed it's path. He stopped, before throwing it across to the other side of the room and smirking as I bolted after it, before composing his face again.

'I'm not interested in puppies, Scott.' He said, walking back to the desk, and resuming hia previous position. Stiles glanced over at where I was lying on the floor, staring protectively at my ball, before moving towards Derek.

'Look, what Scott is neglecting to tell you, is the actual reason for bringing her here.' He said, talking with his hands again. He looked at Scott. 'Care to step in here?' Scott sighed again.

'She...smells different.' He said, realising just how dumb that sounded now. Derek frowned.

'All werewolves smell different Scott, this isn't news to me.' Derek said, standing up.

'Yes, but she smells _weird, _like, she doesn't smell like a beta. Or an alpha for that matter. And since we saw that one last year, she doesn't smell like an omega either.' Scott continued, defending his point. There was a pause, as Derek looked over at me, staring for a moment as though in deep thought, before looking down.

'Hey, kid.' He called, and my ears picked up. 'Come here.' I scrambled to my feet, grabbing my ball before trotting over to the alpha eagerly. He turned to me, looking me in the eyes again, with that intensity that made moving away not an option. For a moment, I could have sworn that his eyes began to glow a sort of familar red. Like my dad's. His eyes then narrowed slightly, before a low growl began to escape his lips. My own eyes widen in fear, as his lips parted to reveal long, sharp, canines, before the low growl became an all out roar in my face. I moved backwards slightly, as his arm raised above his head, claws becoming very aparent where his finger nails should be. I yelped a little, as his arm came down in a swift movement towards my stomach, jerking my vunerable belly out of his reach. His other hand quickly followed, this time going for my face, to which I ducked backwards. It felt slightly as though everything had gone into slow motion at that point, reminding me briefly of the matrix, before another roar brought me back to my senses, and I turned and ran, chucking my bag to one side as I bolted towards the wall. I could hear Derek move after me, a clawed hand only centimetres from my spine, as I lept up, executed a decent sideways landing on the wall, and rebounded off over his head, landing in a tuck roll and running again. As I passed the boys, who were in some state of shock, I propelled myself into the air and caught hold of a wooden beam lifting my legs out of harms way, as Derek skidded to a hault beneath me, growling up at my hanging form. I swung my legs backwards and forwards for a second, building up momentum, before kicking backwards with all my might and releasing my grip on the beam. I somersualted in the air, landing on both feet a few metres away from Derek, one hand on the floor to steady me. I knew I couldn't run forever, and although I spied a spiral staircase in the corner, I didn't think going higher would be to my advantage. He advanced towards me carefully, and I slowly stood up, my eyes still wide, as my own claws made an appearance, and my teeth became longer. Suddenly, he lunged for me again, his claws going for my juggular, and my arm flew up to block it, throwing it away from me. This initiated a close combat fight, with Derek slashing and kicking, and me ducking and blocking. After I span under his leg, which was attempting to kick my head, my hand involuntarily lashed out towards his arm, leaving a deep cut along his shoulder. An action I instantly regretted. The last thing I had planned to do was make the angry alpha angrier. But it was too late now, so as he yelled at his wound, I swiftly kicked his legs out from under him and grabbed his injured arm, pushing it towards the floor. I followed him down, planting my left foot on his right arm, my right foot on his left, and holding his chest with my right hand, the other held out behind me for balance. There was a moment of complete silence, as nobody moved, and Derek and I breathed heavily, trying to catch our breath. The red in Derek's eyes then began to fade, his entire face becoming calmer, and his teeth withdrew to normal size. Mine followed suit, my claws retracting, as my face remained a picture of slight shock at my actions, eyes wide and mouth tight. Somehow, though, I still couldn't quite move.

'She's a theta.' Derek said, and the boys looked at each other in confusion.

'What's a theta?' Isaac asked, as I got off Derek and helped him up, before sheepishly wandering off to pick up my bag and ball.

'It's a different type of werewolf. The warrior of the pack.' Derek answered, dusting himself off and massaging his healing shoulder. 'It's what normally happens to an omega who's not alone.' Stiles looked confused.

'Wait, I thought that's what an omega _was_, a werewolf without a pack. So how does that work?' Stiles enquired, folding one arm across his chest and leaning his other elbow on it, his hand to his face.

'It's when an omega has someone other than themselves to protect. It could be family, a friend, significant other, but it means they become more powerful than a beta or omega, and can almost match an alpha. They have to be able to ward off any danger they face.' Derek explained, sitting back on his desk.

'Wait, so I'm a what now?' I said, walking back over to them.

'A theta.' Derek said. 'Tell me, when you change, what do you become?' I frowned a little, tilting my head to one side

'What do you mean?' I asked Derek, not quite understanding.

'When you become a werewolf, what happens to you?' He said slowly. I thought for a moment.

'Well, I turn into a wolf. Doesn't everybody?' I said hesitantly. Scott, Stiles and Isaac looked at each other, a mixture of shock and confusion, which worried me even more.

'Wait, you turn into, like, an _actual_ wolf?' Stiles said, bemused. I nodded nervously, fiddling with the ball in ny hands.

'It's something thetas can do.' Derek continued, 'Most of the time it's a full transformation, but they have the ability to extend their claws and teeth seperately, without completely turning. It's part of what makes them so powerful. As a wolf, they have about twice the power of a new alpha.'

'So, what does this mean?' Isaac asked, folding his arms. Derek looked at me thoughtfully.

'Well, maybe Scott was right to bring her here. She could be useful after all.' He said. My eyes lit up with glee.

'Wait, so...could I join your pack?' I asked carefully, not wanting to be too pushy.

'Actually, yes. You could be quite helpful right now. We need all the help we can get.' Derek said, looking at his feet on the last part. I balled my hands into fists, my thumbs tucked inside my hoodie sleeves, and brought my arms into my chest.

'Really?! Oh my god yay!' I said, grinning from ear to ear, as I bounced on the spot for a minute. 'Okay, I'm going to stop being such a dork now.' I shoved my hands in my pockets and rocked on my heels, still smiling. The others smiled at me again, although Scott tried to cover it a little, and Derek didn't smile at all, but the corners of his mouth twitched up for a moment.

'Sooo, is there some initiation test, or...?' I asked to the room in general. Everybody looked at Derek expectantly.

'Well, it's not exactly initiation, more of a technicality. Just to make you a known part of the pack, seeing as I didn't bite you.' He said. We continued to look at him, until he rolled his eyes. 'Fine, it's an initiation.' He got up and walked over to the staircase. 'I just didn't qalk to say initiation, because that's something third graders say about a secret club.' He made his way up the stairs, and the others smiled at each other.

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the positive feedback you've been giving, I really appreciate it :D I just wanted to let you guys know, that I've been having such problems deciding which way this story would go (Stiles or Isaac :S) that I'm splitting it into two :) there will be a point in this story, where this title stays with one character, creating one pairing, and I will create another which plays out the other pairing. I will warn you when this happens, so you have the option of reading the other (or both). Message me which path you want to stay here and which should be an independant story...if that makes any sense, guys, then you're all genius's :P thanks for reading!**

**SP x**


	5. Blood Bond

'Okay, so this is a little weird, I'm not gonna lie.' I said, as Derek fastened the strap around my right wrist. I was sat in a black, dentist-style chair. Derek was sat on a stool beside me, whilst the others stood around the room, in various states of uncomfort.

'So, what is it we're doing again?' I said, shifting awkwardly in my seat as I watched Derek prepare a syringe.

'It's called a blood bond.' He said, rolling up his sleeve to reveal the crook of his elbow. 'It's a way of joining a new pack. You take the blood of the alpha, and combine it with the newcomer's.' He put the needle down for a moment and looked at me seriously. 'You have to understand, this is an extremely painful process. Are you completely sure about this? You did only meet me today, are you certain you're willing to let me be your alpha?' I looked back at him with big eyes, thinking about what he said. He was right, of course, this was happening very quickly. But it was probably my best chance of survival in this new town, to team up with the local pack rather than chance it on my own.

'I'm sure.' I said firmly. Derek nodded once, before picking up the syringe again and carefully inserted it into his vein. As he drew the blood from his arm, Stiles gagged a little. We all looked at him questioningly.

'I'm sorry, it's just-' he swollowed, '-it reminds me of Scott's tattoo.' He gagged again as he glanced at the syringe again, before quickly looking away, grabbing the edge of a table. Derek shook his head slightly.

'Dude, that was like a week ago.' Said Scott, looking confused.

'Yeah, and I'm still not over it.' Stiles said seriously, clutching his stomach. I tilted my head, confused.

'Wait, tattoo? Don't you have to...?' I faded out, as Scott stepped forwards and rolled up his left sleeve, revealing two black stripes around his arm.

'Ohh..' I said, giving a small smile, 'you're stripey.' Scott gave a small smile. Isaac gave a slight snort in the background. Derek carefully withdrew the needle, and Stiles retched again, one hand firmly covering his mouth. Derek sighed loudly, clearly getting annoyed at the human, before he turned to him and fixed the boy with a deadly glare. There was a moment of tension, where there was nothing but silence, before Stiles tried desperately to straighten up and compose himself.

'Do you need someone to hold your hand, Stiles?' He said deliberately, whilst Stiles began to frantically indiacate "no" with his hands, 'Or would you like me to inject this into you, forcefully?' Stiles stumbled over his words, but I gathered that he was saying something along the lines of "no" again. Derek took a breath the steady himself, before once again turning to me.

'Are you ready?' He asked, flicking the point of the needle, in that way doctors do on TV. I grimaced, as I suddenly had the visualisation of that needle breaking the skin of my arm, and the pain that would apparently follow, and in that moment, I was terrified. But I forced myself to nod, knowing I had to trust these people. I squeezed my eyes shut, as Derek gently stretched out the pale skin on my forearm to find the necessary vein. When he spoke next, his voice was calm and soothing.

'I'm going to count down from three, so it's not too much of a shock, okay?' I nodded again, trying to relax my arn and taking measured breaths.

'Three...' _oh god, why did we have to move, this would never have happened in England._

'Two...' _oh god oh god, I'm so scared, what if something goes wrong?_

'One.' _Oh crap, I can't change my mind. _There was a sharp stab of pain in my arm, causing me to wince involuntarily, as the point of the needle pierced the skin. Then came the actual pain. It was as though Derek was pumping molten lava into my body. For a moment, the feeling was so unusual, that my body took a moment to react, so luckily the syringe was no longer in my arm when I began convulsing. I began squirming, almost uncontrollably, as I tried to get away from whatever it was that was eating me up from tge inside. The excruciating heat spread like literal wildfire, traveling quickly from my arm until it covered my entire body. It was like someone had tried to shove the sun under my skin. I opened my eyes wide, and yet I couldn't see the room anymore, only a brilliant white, and multicoloured spots danced across my vision. My hands scrabbled against the worn leather and metal, desperately searching for sonething to hang onto that wasn't the arms of the chair. Then their hands found me, one in either of my own, one in the crook of my left elbow, one on either of my shoulders and one that gently stroked my fringe out of my face, before resting on the top of my head. My hands tightly gripped the two I was holding, feeling a little safer, but the pain still wouldn't relinquish. The dancing stars I saw then began to form a pattern, a shape. Three lines began to curl into three swirls, connecting in the middle. I saw this, and instinctively knew that this was important, this was the symbol I belonged to now. Then suddenly the white got brighter, until it was blinding, and my whole body began to shake, until suddenly everything went black.

_As Derek injected his blood into her body, everybody leant forwards slightly, and watched as Carrie did nothing more than flinch a little at the needle. He removed the syringe carefully, and that's when it started. Her body began writhing, the straps around her wrists straining as she contorted wildly. Stiles, Isaac and Scott quickly gathered round her, uncertain of what to do, but Derek raised a hand to stop them, watching her attentively. Her eyes suddenly flew open, but couldn't appear to see, as they flicked quickly around the room, desperately searching for something to lock onto. She apparently found it, as her eyes fixed onto a point ahead of her, and an unnatural white light started to burst from her sockets. Carrie's hand began then to grab at the air, clawing at the seat arms. Derek took hold of the hand closest to him instinctively, keeping a firm, reasuring grip. Stiles looked at him, and something clicked in his head. He encaptured her small hand in both of his, getting a sort of warm feeling in the pitt of his stomach as he did. Which he ignored. Scott looked to Derek and Stiles, before he placed what he hoped where supporting hands on her shoulders, standing behind her. Isaac followed the others' lead, placing one hand in the crook of her elbow and giving it a slight squeeze. With the other, he gently moved the hair out of her face, before resting his hand on her head. She seemed to appreciate all of this, as she relaxed ever-so slightly, still continuing to contort. Stiles' buckled at the knees after a second, though, as Carrie's grip tighten on his and Derek's hand, although Derek remained motionless, still staring at the girl. Then, out of nowhere, she froze. She was completely still for a few seconds, before she began violently trembling, and began a long, high pitched scream._

'_Derek!' Scott yelled over the noise, looking panicked. Derek stood, still holding her hand, as the others looked frantically between him and Carrie, who was still letting out her scream. Stiles was resiliantly still holding onto her other hand, not that he had that much choice, and he held it tightly, his other hand now covering his ear in a lame attempt to block out the sound._

'_Derek!' Isaac yelled, and Derek finally looked at him._

'_Just wait!' He yelled back, and after a few moments longer, before she went completely limp, the scream finally over._

When I came to a few minutes later, I felt odd, and it sounded like a frag granade had gone off nearby. My ears were ringing, and my whole body felt subdued, as though I had been tranquilised somehow, plus there was an odd metalic taste in my mouth. I slowly opened my eyes to reveal the blurry, out of focus room, and my hearing started to come back. I began to make out what sounded like words, although it was like hearing someone talk whilst you were rising out of water. Suddenly, it were as though I'd burst through the surface, as their words became clear, and I blinked a little until my eyes focused on Isaac's worried face. My head had managed to loll to one side, where it now rested on my left shoulder, so I guessed Isaac must be crouching.

'Carrie? Carrie can you hear me?' I could hear a few voices say, one of them being Isaac. I gave him a weak smile, and he grinned back at me.

'She's awake.' He announced. I heaved my head up to look around at the others, the straps still fastened around my wrists. Derek was stood over me on my right, looking at me intensely, whilst Stiles still had hold of my left hand. I vaguely remembered him slapping it when I came round. When I looked at him, he quickly let go, embarressed and apologetic for some reason. Scott stood next to Derek, further away, and was giving me a slightly worried smile, which I returned, and he relaxed a little. I turned back to Derek, looking him directly in the eye, and felt a huge sense of loyalty towards him. My eyes began to glow, and his matched me, burning brilliant red whilst mine beamed a sunset orange. He nodded, turning away, his eyes snapping back to normal.

'It worked, let's get her out of there.' He told the others, beginning to undo the strap on his side. Stiles jerked into action, working on the strap by him, fiddling with the buckle. I watched, pulling my hands out when they were freed, and sitting up properly in the chair, rubbing my wrists. I jumped off the seat, a wobbled a little, my knees buckling underneath me. Stiles grabbed my hands to steady me, as I watched the room spin a little before my eyes.

'Okay?' He asked, to which my only reply was to make a face which suggested uncertainty. Derek was quickly by my side, looping my arm over his shoulder and helping me out of the room. Behind us, the three boys looked at each other, still not certain how to react, before following after us.

**Thanks for all the views and opinions guys, I really appreciate it. Again, reviews are very welcome, and are a real motivation to keep writing :)**

**Thanks for reading,**

**SP x**


	6. Missing

Once I became a part of the pack, I began to feel like I had a proper family for the first time in years. I had actual friends, people who sat with me at lunch, gave me rides home or simply walked me there, and people I could hang out with outside of school. It was the greatest feeling. About a week and a half later, Stiles dragged Scott to this party his friend was having, and Isaac and Derek were still looking for some clue as to the whereabouts of these other pack members, Erica and Boyd, so I decided to treat myself and have a night to myself. Mum was out, again, with some director, so I set about making myself a home-cooked meal for one. About halfway through making a small spagetti bolgnese, my ancient nokia rang in the other room. I put the mince on a slightly lower heat, whilst I went to rumage around the sofa in search of my phone. I finally found it underneath a cushion, and answered.

'Hello?' I said, walking back into the other room to continue cooking.

'Hey, Carrie, it's Scott.' Said the voice at the other end.

'Scott, hey!' I said with a smile, tucking the phone between my ear and my shoulder so I had both hands free. 'I thought you were at some party with Stiles?' I heard a sigh, as I stirred the mince, pouring in the tomato pureé.

'Yeah, I am, but Stiles is, er, "otherwise occupied" right now.' He said, and I could hear the quotation marks in his voice.

'Oh? How so?' I said.

'Well, right now, he's in the wine cellar with the girl who's party this is. Left me standing awkwardly in the corner.' He said, and my stomach dropped ever-so slightly.

'Oh god.' I replied with a shaky laugh.

'Yeah. So, heard anything from Derek or Isaac?' Scott asked. I sighed, leaning my back on the counter.

'No, nothing. Isaac said they were hitting more and more dead ends when we talked at lunch. He's really wound up about this.' I said, chewing my lip.

'Yeah, we all are. Okay, thanks for talking, I feel like an idiot just standing here. I'll see you at school tomorrow.' He replied.

'Don't worry about it. See you at school.' I said, and I hung up the phone, setting it down on the counter before getting back to cooking.

'What-up furballs?' I said cheerfully, strolling up to Scott and Stiles in the corridor. They smiled at me, before Stiles continued talking heatedly to Scott.

'I'm telling you, Scott, she was literally _all_ over me!' He said, his eyes wide. I rolled mine, shoving my hands in the pockets of my brown leather jacket and leaning on the lockers behind Scott.

'I'm telling the truth!' He insisted, and I could guess the look on Scotts face, which made me grin to myself. Stiles sighed, exasperated, and shut his locker, before we started walking down the corridor.

'Okay, okay, so she was all over you, asked you to have sex with her, then just disappeared?' Scott asked, playing along with what Stiles had apparently said. My eyes widened slightly, my eyebrows raising in surprise. Scott looked at me and pulled an expression that caused me to half to surpress a giggle.

'Yes!' Said Stiles insistantly, 'Look, she disappeared, she must have gotten too nervous, and I've tried calling her since then, but there's never any reply.' I chewed the inside of my lip, thinking about it for a moment.

'She's probably just embarressed. I mean, I would be, if I'd ever done that sort of thing.' I said, pondering over the situation. The tips of Stiles' ears went pink, probably from the memory.

'Yeah, I guess that makes sense. I'm just worried, y'know? I've known Heather since I was three.' Stiles continued, folding his arms, chewing on one of his fingers. The bell, that hadn't gotten any less annoying, rang through the halls, causing me to wince instinctively.

'We know, Stiles. Listen, I'm sure she's fine. C'mon, we have biology.' Scott tried to reasure him, then turning to me. 'We'll see you at lunch.' I smiled, before looking at Stiles again, seeing how genuinely worried he was. I suddenly felt a huge wave of sympathy wash over me. I stepped forwards, going up on tip-toe, and put my arms around his neck, resting my head on his shoulder. After a second, he tentatively returned the hug, putting his arms around my waist and ribs. There was a sort of fizzing sensation in my stomach again, and I felt sort of safe like this, wrapped up in Stiles' arms. Which was obsurd, seeing as he was a squishy human, and I was a deadly werewolf. I mentally shook off whatever it was, rubbing his back once and pulling away slightly to look him in the eye, my hands on his neck.

'I'm sure everything will be fine, alright?' I said, with an ernest expression and big eyes. He looked slightly bewildered for a second, before nodding, the corners of his mouth pulling up. I smiled broadly at him, pulling away completely and standing properly, looking at the two of them. 'I'll see you later.' I continued, patting Stiles' shoulder as I walked away in the opposite direction, smiling to myself.

_'Was it just me, or was that weird?' Stiles asked Scott, as Carrie walked away down the hall._

'_It wasn't weird, it was just a friendly hug.' Scott replied, as they began to walk in the opposite direction. Stiles looked back over his shoulder._

'_Well it felt weird...' he mumbled._

'Hey.' Scott said, as he sat down opposite me in the canteen. I looked up from my chicken tortilla wrap and smiled at him.

'Hey.' I replied cheerfully, before tilting my head to the left a little at his expression. 'What's wrong? And where's Stiles?' Scott sighed.

'He's with the sheriff. I listened in, and from what I heard, Stiles' friend is missing.' He answered, running a hand through his hair. My heart sank slightly, and I put my wrap down.

'Oh God. Poor Stiles, he's gonna be torn up.' I said, rested my head on my hand, my elbow on the table. Scott nodded.

'Who's going to be torn up?' Isaac sat down next to me, biting into a large red apple. I suddenly felt a sort of warmth running through me, spreading from my chest to the tips of my fingers and toes, as my body registered his presence next to me. I looked at him.

'Stiles. His friend is missing.' I explained, folding up my wrap in cling-film, my appetite gone. I packed my lunch away into my bag, putting it beside me and running both hands through my blonde hair, ruffling it up.

'Jeez, that sucks. Poor girl.' Isaac said thoughtfully. I nodded, folding my arms on the table and burying my face in them, looking defeated. Scott smirked, before mimicking my position.

'You okay, kiddo?' He asked. I huffed, lifting my head to look at him, resting my chin on my arms.

'I'm just worried. What if this has something to do with the alpha pack?' I said. Scott looked away, leaning back.

'I don't know. Maybe. We shouldn't jump to conclusions. Let's just focus on Erica and Boyd for now.' He said, and I sat up, taking a deep breath and nodding. Isaac nodded too, putting his apple core on the table.

'Hey, about that, there's a chance we might have a lead.' Isaac said, looking between Scott and I. We both sat up, alert, looking hopeful.

'Really? What?' Scott asked. Isaac looked a little shifty.

'Well...Derek's uncle had an idea.' He said, looked a little shamefaced. I frowned a little, confused. I hadn't really been a part of the pack long enough to gather a proper opinion of Derek's uncle, he seemed nice enough, but every time I'd been round Derek's, everyone acted very frosty with him. Scott certainly seemed...peeved.

'Peter? Why should we trust any idea of his?' He said, frowning angrily. Isaac sighed, and looked as though he was preparing for battle. I picked at the elastic band around my wrist, pulling it off and playing with it, as I pondered whether or not to stay and listen to this arguement, seeing as I couldn't give an opinion. I did have to study, so I was extremely tempted to go to the library. I sighed, looking up and realising I'd zoned out of the conversation, I started listening to what they were saying.

'Look, Derek's getting desperate. Come round tonight if you want, but it's happening, whether your there or not. He just wants something to go on, and I might know something.' Isaac said, looking ernestly at Scott, leaning across the table slightly. Scott took a deep breath, exhaling loudly.

'Fine. Do whatever. Just, let me know if you get anywhere, okay?' Scott said, getting up and slinging his rucksack over his shoulder. 'I'm gonna go find Stiles, I'll see you guys later.' He walked away, and Isaac and I looked at each other.

'Wanna help me study for a test you've already done?' I asked him, with a hopeful smile. He smirked at me, glancing away.

'Sure.' He said. We got up and began to weave our way through the tables and students. 'Which subject are we looking at today?' He continued, as we pushed open the double doors and walked down the corridor towards the library.

'Chemistry. I'm doing okay, I mean I understand everything alright, but there's just some stuff that won't, y'know, go _in_.' I said, talking with my hands as I did. He chuckled to himself, looking at the ground as we walked.

'Well, I'm sure I can help in some way. Like you said, I've already done this test.' He said, grinning at me. I gave a small laugh, as we turned a corner and went into the library.

'So, what are you going to do exactly?' I pondered. I was sat, cross-legged, on the floor in front of the wooden chair, on which Isaac was sat. The skye outside the loft was dark, the outline of the town lit up like a christmas tree. The inside of the loft was gloomy, so there were candles and small lamps everywhere, giving off a soft glow. In my mind, it felt quite cosy and warm. Isaac looked at me, giving me a quick wink. I blushed stupidly, quickly looking away at Peter.

'Well, I'm going insert my claws into our friend's neck, in such a way, that I will be momentarily connected to him,' Peter said, walking around behind Isaac and slapping his hands on his shoulders, 'allowing me to have a little rumage around his thoughts and memories.' He ruffled Isaac's curls, causing his face to twist in annoyance. 'See if we can maybe find out whatever it was he found.' He patted Isaac on the cheek a few times, before proceeding to crack his knuckles loudly behind Isaac's head. I frowned, slightly confused.

'Wait, maybe? I thought you said this would work?' I asked, looking at Peter nervously. He pulled a face at me, shrugging absentmindedly.

'It might work, might not, we'll find out soon enough.' He gave me a weird smile, making me more uncomfortable with the whole situation. He leant down to talk to Isaac.

'Ready?' Peter asked, and Isaac nodded bracing himself. Peter gave a nod, standing up and extending the claws in one of his hands with a flourish. With his eyes closed and his other hand on Isaac's shoulder again, he stabbed his talons into Isaac's neck. Both of their eyes flew open, Isaac's blazing yellow whilst Peter's faintly glowed blue. A terrible noise came out of Isaac's mouth, somewhere between pain and anger, causing me to fall backwards in shock. After a moment, the sound ended, and I began to slowly crawl forwards him. His face was twisted in agony, his yellow eyes staring somewhere above me, his claws out and digging into his knees. I watched in wonder, sat on my feet in front of him. I sat up onto my knees, my hand reaching out tentatively and I placed it on one of his, tucking my thumb underneath the edge of his fingers and holding on securely. He stopped moving for a second, and his eyes slowly moved to look at me, boring into mine. His hand curled around mine, gripping my fingers tightly. I cautiously did the same with our other hands, and he held that one too. We stayed like that, looking at each other, mezmorised, until I noticed black vein-type things crawling up my arms and a sort of dull ache. I stared at my forearms, in awe of whatever was happening, before I noticed Isaac's grip became a little tighter, until I regained eye contact with him. Then, without warning, Peter retracted his claws and stumbled away, leaving Isaac to slump sideways onto the floor, his eyes blank. Derek rushed towards Peter, whilst I stayed with Isaac, having caught him on his way towards the floor. We sat on the floor, my hands on his shoulders to steady him, as he blinked several times and looked around. I looked at him, and he finally caught my eye and looked back, staring at me for a moment. We both looked up at Derek's voice, yelling at Peter.

'What did you see?' Derek demanded. Peter turned to him slowly.

'It was blurry. But I think I know where they are.'


	7. The Oak Tree

'Wait, so Peter knows where Erica and Boyd are?' Stiles asked me, as we walked across the park towards our usual hang-out spot. It was an old tree, with a large, low hanging branch that was concealed inside, meaning I could leap around monkey-style without anyone seeing. The tree was huge, with enough space and branches to make it like a super fun playground for me, whilst the outer leaves hid us completely from the other people in the park. We walked inside the tree, and I threw my bag by the branch, as I began to do my stretches. Stiles dumped his bag with mine, clambering onto the wide branch as I leapt into the tree.

'No, he said what he saw was too fuzzy, he couldn't quite make it out.' I explained, as I swung from one branch to another. 'We have another idea though. Scott asked his boss, and he says there's this thing he can do, help Isaac remember.' Stiles nodded, as I silently landed on the branch above him, crawling along it and concealing myself.

'So, where's this going down? I wanna be there this time, help out somehow.' He said, pulling a chocolate bar out of his pocket. Like he needed any more energy. I grinned to myself, waiting about one second before I let myself drop, upside down, in front of his face so that I was hanging from the branch.

'Tonight, at the vets.' I said with a smile. Stiles yelped, flinching backwards into another branch, almost dropping his chocolate. I laughed, delighted at his reaction.

'Don't do that! Look, get down here and talk to me properly.' He said, as he recovered from his earlier embarressment and I climbed down and positioned myself comfortably on the branch a foot in front of him, crossing my legs.

'Chocolate?' I said, my eyes wide and innocent, a hopeful smile on my face. He stopped chewing for a moment, looking at me blankly. I opened my mouth like a baby bird, and he looked between me and the chocolate bar in his hand, before rolling his eyes. With a smirk on his face, he broke off a piece and threw it to the side. I didn't hesitate, as I leaped (rather clumsily) after it, catching it in my mouth before it hit the ground. I rolled onto the floor, ending up on my back in the dirt, munching happily. Stiles chuckled, shaking his head as I jumped up and rejoined him on the wooden seat.

'Y'know, I'd happily give you the food you steal from me, if that wasn't so entertaining.' He said, taking another bite of chocolate as I laughed, crossing my legs again. For the rest of the afternoon, I persuaded Stiles to help me with my algebra, he broke out a bag of skittles and we spent about an hour with him seeing how often I could catch the sweets he threw randomly in the air. About 9/10 times, to be presise. As it grew later, and sky became a beautiful deep blue, beginning to speckle with stars, we ended up slightly further up the tree, the highest point Stiles could reach, where we could sit and watch the stars. We sat there next to each other, in total silence, and it was nice. Peaceful.

'I like hanging out with you, Stiles. It's a lot of fun.' I said, still looking at the sky. There was a slight pause.

'Really?' He asked, sounding a little surprised. I turned to look at him with a smile.

'Yeah.' We looked at each other for a few seconds, before I decided something. 'C'mon, I want to show you something.' I took his hand and began pulling him up, as I continued higher into the tree. He tried to clamber after me, but his clumsy human feet kept slipping on the ever-thinning branches.

'What is it? I don't think I can go any higher, the tree won't support my weight.' He said, as he slipped once again, clinging the the tree, and my hand, as tightly as possible. I smiled at him again, pulling him up and dangling him near a stable footing, directing him to it.

'Just keep hold of me, I can hold your weight _for _the tree.' I said, releasing my grip on his hand and quickly replacing it on his forearm. He looked at me doubtfully. I rolled my eyes, before hauling him up to my eye level, my arm above my head and his legs dangling against the tree trunk. Stiles' eyes were as wide as soup spoons, a look of mild terror behind his pupils as I smirked at him.

'Okay, I believe you, please tell me where to put my feet and hand, I'd really like to hold onto something.' He said, appearing to be trying to stay calm. I laughed, nodding and pointing out where he should put his feet. We continued to climb, until we got to the point I'd found a few days before, where a gap in the leaves meant you had an unspoiled view of the sky, the stars and moon shining beautifully against the blue so dark it was almost black.

'Here, put your feet there.' I directed, and Stiles followed my instruction obediantly. He grabbed a small branch in front of us, wobbling dramatically as he pointed through the leaves.

'Hey, you can almost see the whole park from here!' He said, excitedly, before crouching more and falling onto the branch he was holding, pointing again. 'Oh my God, I think that's my jeep!' He wobbled wildly again, as his excitment seemed to grow, and I couldn't watch him anymore. I grabbed the scruff of his shirt and pulled him back, keeping my other arm securely round the tree trunk. He looked shocked, but once he found his balance he gave me a sheepish smile and I rolled my eyes.

'Look, just hold onto me, okay?' I said, and placed his hands on my waist. After a moment of him burbling nonsense into my ear, I interupted him. 'Look, there.' I pointed to the gap in the leaves and felt him look to. This had the desired affect, as silence fell again and you could hear the crickets near by.

'Wow...' he breathed, gazing at the view.

'Yeah. It's beautiful isn't it?' I said. There was a pause.

'Yeah. It is.' He replied quietly. I sighed, glancing at my watch.

'We should be getting back, your dad will get worried.' I said, moving to climb down, when I remembered Stiles couldn't do the same by himself. I began to guide him down, me going backwards in front of him and my hand on his forearm again. We were doing fine, until about halfway down. I'd moved onto a larger branch to let Stiles past onto another section, when his human feet slipped again, and he tumbled through the tree.

'Crap!' I hissed, as his full weight was suddenly in the hand that held his, and he dangled helplessly. He yelped again, franically looking around as I tried to get a better grip on the branch.

'Boy Stiles, you sure are lucky I had a hold of you.' I joked, looking for a place to get him back to safety.

'Yeah, I'm glad I brought my horse shoe and four leaf clover, just please help me?' He replied, sarcastic and clearly terrified. I rolled my eyes, swinging him closer to a neighbouring branch.

'Grab hold of that and don't let go, I'll come down to you.' I said, and he reached out towards it, as I swung him once again. He got a firm grip with one arm, and I let go, allowing him to fall slightly before securing his other arm. I then disappear around the other side of the tree, reappearing on the branch beside him, then dropping onto the one bellow. This one wasn't that much further down, and I was able to stand on it whilst keeping my hands on the branch above. I put one arm firmly around Stiles' waist, my other hand still on his branch.

'Let go.' I commanded. Stiles slipped down a little, so he could look at me in disbelief. 'Trust me.' He sighed closing his eyes tightly, and let go. I caught him, holding him close. He put one arm tightly around my shoulders, the other around my waist. He looked away from the ground, closing his eyes tightly before opening them and looking directly into my eyes. Our faces were inches apart, although mine was lower down, and I was suddenly very aware of his heartbeat, his scent and the exact colour of his eyes. We just stood for a second, balanced on the branch, holding each other for dear life. It was a very...weird moment.

'We should get down now.' I said.

'Yes, yes we should.' He quickly followed, and we continued down the tree hurriedly.

**So, this ended up being a bit of a Stiles/Carrie chapter. I swear that was unintentional. I'm also wondering something, which pairing do you guys think should stay with this story, and which should be the alternative one? Let me know your opinions, and also a review or two would be really nice, if you'd like too :)**

**SP**


	8. Remembering

Cold. That was the general feeling of the room. Cold. The water in the old-fashioned metal bathtub, the ice we were pouring into it, the air in the room, our hands that hauled the bags from the tables. All of it was cold. Once the tub was full, we stood around it, which kind of looked a little bit like some initiation into a weird cult. Isaac was wearily crouching by it opposite me, quite rightly by the sound of it.

'You'll be half transformed. It'll let us access your subconcious mind.' Doctor Deaton explained.

'How slow will his heartbeat be?' Scott asked. I thought about that question,suddenly becoming slightly uncomfortable, and began playing with the belt loops of my jeans nervously, which I'd hooked my thumbs into.

'Very slow.' Deaton said.

'How slow is very slow.' Derek pushed.

'Nearly dead.' A silence fell over the room, as mine, Scott, Derek and Isaac's eyes all widened, looking at him in shock. Isaac cautiously dipped his hand in the water, before flinching back at the cold. He looked up at Deaton, his expression a little anxious.

'It is safe, though, right?' He asked. Deaton looked down at him.

'Do you really want me to answer honestly?' He asked, raising one eyebrow. Isaac looked back at the tub, standing up.

'No. No, not really.' He replied with a sigh. There was an odd snapping sound behind me, from the door. We all slowly turned to look at Stiles, who'd pulled on a rubber glove loudly. We all gave him the same look.

'What?' He said. We continued to look at him. He hastily yanked it off, walking over to the us, looking embarressed. Isaac stood up, looking at the bath.

'If this feels too risky, you don't have to do this.' Derek said, before he could do anything. Isaac looked at him, giving him a nod. He took a deep breath, before pulling off his shirt and putting it on the table behind him. My cheeks went bright pink at the sight of his exposed torso. I quickly looked back at the water, trying not to think about what his soft skin would feel like to touch. I shook my head a little, trying to dislodge the thought, as Isaac stepped carefully into the bath, quickly lowering himself in. He breathing became rapid and heavy, as his body reacted to the sudden dramatic change in temperature. Scott pulled off his jacket and we all moved closer, Scott and Derek positioning themselves either side of his torso, a hand on either shoulder. Stiles and I stood further down, looking a little lost and uncertain of what to do. A second later, Scott and Derek pushed Isaac under the water, water and ice spilling over the side, splashing around my grey boots. I took a step forwards, chewing on my thumb nail, my other arm hugging my body. There was a split second of calm, before Isaac began writhing around under the water, thrashing about as he desperately tried to escape. Stiles and I staggered backwards a few steps in shock, exchanging a look before we ran back to the bath and grabbed his legs, holding him where he was. It was difficult though, he was much stronger than us, and panicking. Suddenly, he burst out of the freezing water, drenching my upper body. He let out a deafening roar, his teeth transformed into razor sharp fangs, his nails turned to talons.

'Get him back under.' Deaton commanded. We managed to get him underneath the surface again, but he continued struggling, his teeth and nails back to normal, and he once again forced his way up. 'Hold him.' There was more urgency in Deaton's voice now.

'We're trying!' Derek yelled, struggling with the enraged Isaac. We all pushed down on Isaac's limbs, and he was once again submurged. We continued to hold him as best we could, until suddenly he was perfectly still. Relaxed. We all gently let go, allowing him to float to the surface. I had to listen hard for his heartbeat, reassure myself he was still alive. We all leaned in cautiously, and I knelt on the floor, leaning on the cool metal. Deaton raised one finger, as though giving a command.

'Now remember, only I talk to him,' he said, as we al became spellbound by the oddness of this moment, 'too many voices will confuse him and draw him out.' We all gave a small nod of understanding. Thunder began to roll outside, lightning striking every now and then. Deaton looked down at the motionless Isaac. I gazed at his still form, wondering how someone is able to look so near to perfect when they're so near death. His pale skin seemed to have grown a little paler, and his once pink lips had become a sort of purpley blue.

'Isaac, can you hear me?' Deaton said, his voice calm and gentle.

'Y-yes, I can hear you.' He stuttered, his teeth chattering slightly, his voice sounding oddly sedated.

'This is Doctor Deaton. I'd like to ask you a few questions, is that alright?'

'Y-yes.' The atmosphere in the room was strange, there was a sort of tension that I couldn't shake, like someone was standing right behind me.

'I want to ask you about the night that you found Boyd and Erica. I want you to remember it for me in as vivid detail as possible, like you're actually there again.' As Isaac took this in, he began to struggle again, shaking his head and trying to retreat away from the request.

'No, I don't wanna do that, I don't wanna do that.' He replied, getting more and more worked up. Thunder struck outside, the lightning flashing to add to the overall freaky feel in the room. We grabbed hold of him again, fighting to restrain him.

'It's alright, just relax,' Deaton reassured him, and we all looked up as the lights in the room began to flicker, 'they're just memories, you can't be hurt by memories.' The lights continued to flicker and flash, _was Isaac doing that? _I couldn't help but think. Isaac was considerably calmer, but still struggled feebley.

'I don't wanna do that.' He insisted, and Scott and Derek placed their hands back on his chest, holding him securely.

'Relax. Just relax.' Deaton's calm voice continued. Isaac went back to being still, and the boys slowly took their hands away once more, the lights returning to normal. 'Good. Now let's go back to that night. To the place you found Erica and Boyd. Can you tell me what you see? Is there some kind of building? A house?'

'It's not a, not a..house. It's stone.' It was so strange to watch him talk, his corpse like body taking ragged, stuttering breaths. 'Like marble.'

'That's perfect. Can you give me any other discriptors?' Deaton continued. I leant forwards, leaning my folded arms on the edge of the bath by his stomach, staring at the boy who seemed to be dancing on the edge of life, teetering closer to his demise by the second.

'It's dusty, so...empty.' Isaac said, frowning ever-so slightly.

'Like an abandoned building?' Deaton asked gentely, steering Isaac towards the knowledge we craved. But Isaac didn't reply. There was a pause. The lights in the room began flickering dramatically, the thunder outside seeming louder, as more blinding lightning struck nearby. Isaac began moving again, writhing around, his face growing troubled.

'Isaac. Isaac?' Deaton said firmly, trying to reach the terrified boy in front of us.

'Someone's here,' He grabbed Scott's arm tightly, his words sounding like a distress call. 'Someone's here!'

'Isaac..' Deaton commanded, but he only thrashed around more.

'No no no, they see me, they see me!' He cried, his voice raising. He yelled in fright, seemingly trying to retreat away from an invisible threat. We grabbed hold of him again, desperately trying to hold him still.

'They're just memories, you won't be hurt by memories. Just relax.' He seemed to calm a little. 'Relax.' He resumed his motionless state from before, slowly releasing his hold on Scott and we all removed out hands once again. 'Good.' Deaton looked to us, before looking back at Isaac. The lights went back to normal once again.

'Now tell us what you see.' Asked Deaton. 'Tell us everything.' I leaned forwards a little again, my forearms resting on the side, my near-numb hands hovering over the water. Isaac's eyes flew around underneath the lids, as though searching for something. Suddenly they stopped, and his eyes slowly opened, revealing the blue iris' beneath.

'I hear him.' I presumed he meant Boyd. 'He's talking about the full moon, about...b-being out of control when the moon rises.' I frowned a little, looking to Derek for answers.

'Is he talking to Erica?' Deaton asked.

'I think so, I can't...I can't see her, I can't see either of them.' He explained.

'Can you hear anything else?' Deaton said, stating every word clearly.

'They're worried.' Isaac replied. The lights had begun slowly flashing again, but much more calmly than before. 'Worried what they'll do during the moon. They're...worried that they're gonna hurt each other.' I looked to Derek again, Scott doing the same. Derek closed his eyes for a moment, sighing like really he didn't want to be the case. He looked at up at us, wearily.

'If they're locked in together on the full moon, they're gonna tear each other apart.' He said seriously. _Oh crap, _I thought.

'Isaac, we need to find them _right now_.' Deaton's voice was full of urgency, but in a way that still somehow sounded calm. It was crazy what this guy could do. 'Can you see them?'

'No.' Isaac said immediately.

'Do you know what kind of room it is?' Deaton pushed. Isaac continued to stare at the slowly flashing light above him. 'Is there any kind of a marker? A number on a door, a sign?' With this, Isaac sat bolt upright, his left hand catching hold of my right, latching onto it tightly. He said nothing for a few moments, he simply stared ahead, looking somewhere past Stiles.

'They're here.' He said quietly, terror clear in his tone. His hand gripping mine so tightly, it felt like he might be crushing the bone. He held my hand in the same way a drowning man holds onto a lift ring. Deaton saw this glancing quickly from our cupped hands to my eyes, before focusing back on Isaac. 'They're here, they're here!' He repeated desperately, as he sank back into the water. His voice was so scared, so quiet, like a child. I grasped his hand tightly with both hands, not sure how else to comfort him but feeling the desperate need to do so.

'It's alright-' Deaton began, but Isaac cut him off.

'No, they're here, they're here!' He whimpered, struggling in the water again.

'It's alright, just tell us-' Deaton tried.

'No they see me, they've found me. They're here!' He insisted, becoming hysterical, almost shouting.

'This isn't working, Isaac where are you?' Derek cut in.

'No, I can't see them, it's too dark!' He shouted back, but Derek wouldn't let up.

'Tell me where you are!' He demanded.

'I can't see!'

'You're going to confuse him' Deaton tried again, but Derek ignored him.

'Isaac, where are you?!' Isaac stopped replying, but continued to thrash around, never letting go of my hand. 'Tell me where you are!' More water and ice slopped over the side of the tub, as Derek held Isaac in place. Isaac face was twisted in fear and anguish.

'His heartrate, he could go into shock!' Deaton hissed.

'Derek, let him go!' Scott demanded.

'Isaac, where are you, what did you see?!' He yelled into Isaac's petrified face.

'It's a vault, it's a bank vault!' He replied frantically. Derek stopped, but Isaac still splashed about, trying to escape whatever he was seeing.

'They've got me, they've found me!' he yelled. 'They're dragging me somewhere, into a room, I'm locked in! There's...there's a body...Erica, it's Erica!' Scott and Derek took a step or two back in shock. Then it clicked. Erica. He suddenly sat bolt upright, releasing my hand and pointing forwards, like he was having a eureka moment.

'I saw it! I saw the name!' He exclaimed. I got up off the floor, where I had fallen on my arse when Isaac let go, hugging my torso with both arms. He clambered out of the bath hurriedly, and Deaton wrapped a large towel around Isaac, covering as much of his shaking body as possible. 'It was Beacon Hills, First National Bank.' He seemed very happy with his discovery, but completely unaware of what he'd said a few moments ago. 'What?' He asked, his face innocent and bewildered.

**Dreadfully sorry about how long this took, it's been a busy week (aka GISHWHES, look it up). Also, I rewatched the beginning of series three, and realised just quite how off I was :S so, I'm just going to say the changes were Carrie's fault, and I've tried to make this chapter as close to the actual scene as possible. Also, seeing as only one person said anything on the subject, the main story will stay as IsaacXCarrie and I'll create a sub-story for StilesXCarrie. I'll put the name of the sub-story at the end of the next chapter.**

**Thanks for reading,**

**SP**


	9. Closer

Once Stiles explained about Erica, Isaac was in slight shock, as is to be expected, and I walked around the metal tub to where he stood. He was still shivering, despite the towel, so I grabbed another from the counter and slung it round his shoulders, having to stand on tiptoe due to the height difference. I pulled it round him further, tucking the two front corners under one of his hands and rubbing his back in what I hoped was a comforting way. I glimpsed Deaton watching me and Isaac again out of the corner of my eye.

'Carrie, could you take Isaac to dry off and change in the next room, please? I'd like to talk to these two a moment.' Deaton asked politely, indicating Scott and Derek. Stiles looked slightly offended, and gave Deaton a questioning look, which was ignored, so he simply rolled his eyes and folded his arms in a huff. I looked at the vetinarian, frowning slightly, before nodding and patting Isaac on the shoulder. He snapped back to reality, blinking and looking at me. I gave him a small smile, and gently pushed him towards the door, guiding him across the room, picking up his bag as we went. I took him through to one of the only other rooms I could see, apart from one that appeared to contain a lot of cat carriers, which seemed to be Deaton's office. It was nice, like a study, with two of the walls lined with bookshelves and a good quality desk in front of the window. I lead him to the desk and made him sit on it, placing his bag next to him and opening it in search of spare clothes.

'So...Erica's dead?' He asked timidly. I looked up at him.

'That's what you said.' I said, sadly. I didn't know this girl, we'd never met, but she'd been a part of the pack, and I couldn't help feeling like I'd lost out on something.

'Dammit.' He said, putting his head in his hands.

'Hey, come on, it's not your fault! You're the one who found them, after all.' I said, putting a hand on his shoulder and tilting my head to look him in the eye.

'Yeah, I found them. But I found them too late.' He said, looking up at me, his arms dropping to his lap. We looked at each other for a moment, my words caught on the tip of my tongue, as I was suddenly distracted by the proximaty of his face to mine. _Wow, his eyes really are a beautiful shade of blue..._I blinked, looking back into the bag and producing a pair of jeans.

'What happened, then? When I was under, I mean. What did I do?' He asked, changing the subject slightly. I think he wanted to take his mind off of Erica for a while. I frowned.

'You mean you don't remember?' I questioned, looking at him, surprised. He shook his head slightly.

'I remember what I saw, but not really what I did.' He explained. I handed him the jeans that were still in my hands, taking the towels he pulled off himself and smartly turning around. It would be way too weird for me to stand looking at him whilst he changed his trousers.

'Well, you writhed about a lot. All four of us had to hold you down. So that's three werewolves, one of whom is an alpha, and one human, struggling to hold you in the water.' I said. There was a small chuckle behind me, and I gave a small smile. 'Water everywhere, by the way. I was soaked.' I added, half-heartedly dabbing the towel on my damp t-shirt.

'Sorry about that.' He said, although I could here the smile in his voice.

'Yeah yeah.' I muttered.

'Here, pass me a towel.' He said, and I held one out, cautiously turning around to look at him. Thankfully, he'd put the fresh jeans on, the wet ones in a pile on the floor. I went back over to the bag, putting the second towel on the desk and beginning to search for a shirt, before remembering it was still in the other room. So, I leant against the desk next to Isaac, as he dried his hair. I played with my fingers, noticing for the first time the pain in my right hand. Isaac really hand broken one of the bones slightly, so I clenched my teeth together and quickly pushed it back in place before it healed wrong. Isaac noticed my expression and gently took my right hand in both of his, looking it over gingerly with a frown.

'What happened?' He asked, looking at me ernestly. I bit my lip, breaking eye contact with him. I had been internally debating whether or not to mention that since we left the other room. Curiousity won me over, however.

'Well...there were moments, when you were under, when you got really...scared, I guess.' I said, still not quite meeting his eye. 'And nearer the end, before you came back up, you...well, my hand was sort of there, I guess, and you sort of grabbed it.' I ended up practically muttering the last part. I took a deep breath, and forced myself to continue. 'And you held it so tight, that you sort of, slightly, broke a bone.' I finished. Isaac still had hold of my hand, and he carefully inspected the break, which was healing quickly. He very gently stroked it with his thumb, not looking back up at me.

'Sorry about that.' He said. 'I just remember needing...a tether. Something to hold onto, to keep me...' He seemed to mull over his next word. 'Safe.' He looked up at me, finally, his gorgeous blue eyes a few inches from mine, causing my heart to race. I knew he'd be able to hear it, which was fairly annoying. Suddenly, there was nothing a wanted more than to lean forwards and close the gap between us, to silence my harsh breathing with his lips. I panicked, I mean I'd never had these sorts of feelings for anyone, and it was surprisingly nerve-wracking. So I chickened out.

'Your shirt's still in the other room, I'll go check if they're done talking.' I garbled, quickly getting up and walking to the door.

'Carrie, wait..' He began, but a quickly cut him off without looking back.

'Back in a sec!' I said cheerily, closing the door behind me and leaning on the other side for a second. I took a very deep breath, exhaling quietly as I attempted to recover mentally from what had just happened. Which, technically, was nothing, but something happened to me that was terrifying. I almost didn't want to go back in.

**Hey guys, thanks for reading, hope you liked it. As promised in the previous chapter, the name of the alternate story, with StilesXCarrie, will be called Pack Mentality: The Wolf-Girl Who Cried Human.**

**Please review, it's always extremely welcome.**


	10. A Time Comes for Things to Happen

It was 7:30am when I fell off the edge of the sofa with a soft thud, for some reason too tired to get to my bed last night. I lay sprawled on the floor, frowning as I rubbed my eyes free from sleep. I sat up groggily, looking to my thick-banded watch and noticing the time. That kicked me into action, and I scrambled to my feet, before realising I was, in fact, wearing yesterday's clothes. My face became a colon, forward slash, and I dashed to my room in search of fresh clothing, noticing my mum's door firmly shut with a pair of mans shoes lying hap-hazardly on the floor. Ew. I shook the thought from my head, and shut my door behind me, heading for the old-fashioned white wardobe. I dug around for a while, before putting on a thing called a playsuit, which was kind of like a sleeve-less collared shirt attached to shorts. It was a sort of pale yellow, decorated with red birds, and it was pretty comfy, really. I put red tights underneath, pulling on some grey converse and a grey cardigan. It was a more girly day today, then. I looked in the mirror and ruffled my hair. _Yeah, that'll do, _I thought, as I grabbed my bag from the end of my bed and headed to the kitchen. There was still a choc-chip muffin in the cupboard, and as I stood up, taking a bite, a sound caught my attention. Like a...revving engine? I frowned quizzically, following the noise to the front window, opening it and leaning out. There, at the side of the road, holding a black helmet in either hand, a grinning Isaac was sat on Scott's bike. His hair was slightly tousled from the helmet, making it more curly and ruffled. I laughed, as he waved one helmet in a sort of invitation.

'Fancy a ride?' He called, and I shook my head slightly in disbelief.

'I'll be right down.' I called back. Still laughing with a wide smile, I jogged through the flat to the front door, grabbing my keys from the bowl and leaving quietly, before racing down the stairs two at a time. Werewolf perk - I hadn't even broken a sweat when I reached the bottom and jogged outside. I slowed to a walk as I rounded the corner, not wanting to seem over eagar, although in truth, I adored riding Scott's bike.

'I was unaware you could ride a motorbike.' I said as I approached. 'Or that you had a license to do so.' He grinned, as I leaned carefully on the front end of the bike.

'Well, I thought it would be a nice treat for you, seeing as you love riding this thing.' He said, and my smile became smaller and kind of shy. His grin slowly disappeared, and he looked down at his lap before looking up at me again, his face somewhat apologetic. 'Also I thought that if you were preoccupied with the bike, it might distract you from the sorry driver long enough to smooth things over.' He continued, which made me frown slightly. What did he mean? Was this about breaking my hand? It was all fine and healed up now anyway, so he had nothing to apologise for. I gave him a look that he himself had now dubbed "the quizzical puppy", which is apparently what I looked like when I did a subconcious facial expression, tipping my head slightly to one side and looking a little confused. He smiled a small smile at this, and sighed.

'Look, I'm sorry about last night.' I shook my head slightly and raised a hand, gesturing that it was no big thing.

'Please, don't worry about it...'

'I probably crossed a line somewhere...'

'No, seriously, it's fine, I'm fine-'

'I just, I know, I shouldn't have tried to kiss you, and-'

'-it's healed up now, and...wait, what?' I stood up properly, frowning with further confusion. Kiss me? You mean that wasn't all in my head, he was actually that close because he was going to kiss me? My eyes widened and I glanced away, trying to remember that moment properly.

'I shouldn't have tried to kiss you, I know, it probably would have ruined our friendship or whatever-' he began, still looking sheepish, although now there was slight confusion in there too.

'Wait, wait, wait.' I cut him off. 'I didn't know you were trying to kiss me, I thought I was just being socially awkward!' He gave a chuckle at my comment, looking relieved. Then alarmed.

'Oh God, now I've made it awkward, I shouldn't have pointed it out.' He whined, and I laughed.

'No, no, it's fine, honest.' I said, taking the moped-style helmet from him and sorting out the strap. A coy smirk crept across my face. 'I mean, of course I wouldn't mind if you kissed me.' I gave him a cheery smile, supressing a laugh at his shocked expression, as I pulled on the helmet, fastening the strap, and climbed on the bike behind Isaac. A question suddenly occurred to me as I wrapped my arms around Isaac's middle.

'By the way, how did you get hold of Scott's bike, anyway?' I asked.

'I texted Scott and asked if I could borrow it, got up a little earlier and went to his house. No big deal.' He replied, kicking the support away and restarting the engine, putting his own helmet on. I could hear the smile in his voice. I lifted my legs up onto the bike and held onto Isaac for dear life, as we sped off down the road, my heart hammering loudly.

The school day dragged by sluggishly, becoming one lesson after another, information going in one ear and out the other. I didn't so much as take notes as doodle random shapes and squiggles in my notebook. When the bell went for lunch, I sighed in relief, packing away my things and strolling out of the classroom amongst the thrall of students, heading for the sports field to watch lacrosse practice and lement about the fact I couldn't join the team because I was a girl. It sucked, it looked like so much fun, even if I'd never seen it in Britain before, so I was a little fuzzy on the rules. I got to the edge of the stands just as the team came out for a warm up. Isaac spotted me, and jogged up behind me. I could see underneath his kit that he'd ld see underneath his kit that he'd changed into joggers and a jumper, making him look much more relaxed than normal, which was nice to see. I could just imagine cuddling up with him on a sunday afternoon, in the rain when there's nothing else to do but sit inside with a duvet, popcorn, chocolate and bad movies. I sighed internally, still unsure if that was a possibility.

'Hey, how's it going?' He asked, giving me a goofy smile which I couldn't help but return.

'Hey. Yeah, not bad, y'know.' I replied, nodding. There was a moment where neither of us said anything, we just sort of looked at each other shyly, before Isaac remembered something.

'Oh, hey, did you hear about the plan tonight?' He said. My brow furrowed in confusion.

'No, what's happening tonight?' I asked, my head tilting slightly to one side.

'Scott and Stiles have worked out how the bank robbers got in, they're meeting at Derek's to come up wHe explained. My eyebrows knitted together, my bottom lip jutting out in a slightly childish pout.

'Awh, what? I wanna help!' I whinged, and he shook his at me in disbelief.

'You do know they're not going for a casual night out, right? It is going to be very dangerous, hence why I'm not allowed to go.' He said, his hands tucking into his pockets.

'I know, but I want to help!' I insisted. The coach yelled something insulting at us, so Isaac slung his arm around my shoulder and pulled me the few feet to the stands, hoisting me onto the second step so I was ever-so-slightly taller than him.

'You are the only person I know who would leap into a battle with monsters, and be excited about it.' He said with a slight smirk. A gave a small giggle and a matching shrug, before my brow furrowed slightly. I leant forwards, wrapping my arms around his shoulders and neck, my chin on his shoulder by his ear. He hesitated for a nanosecond, before his arms wound around my waist.

'We're not monsters.' I whispered, knowing he would hear me. 'We're superheros.' I felt his smile against my cheek, and hugged him a little tighter, before pulling away. I initially tried to step away completely, but his hands stayed on my waist, keeping me close, my hands on his chest. And then we were kissing. His lips were soft and sweet, and felt extraordinary on mine, sending sparks across my skin. My heart hammered, feeling like it could burst out of my chest.

'Lahey! Quit fondling that sophmore and do some warm ups!' A voice yelled angrily. Our lips parted, leaving me oddly out of breath.

'Be my girlfriend.' He said quietly, looking me straight in the eyes, his face serious, before he jogged away, leaving my lips and arms feeling strangely empty. My hands hovered in the air for a moment, before I blinked back to reality, and quickly found a place to sit in the empty bleachers, pulling my cardigan around me a little tightem His girlfriend? That was honestly what he wanted? I couldn't believe to let me on the team. Maybe I could pretend to be a boy? Coach seemed like the type to believe me, or at least over-look it if I could play well enough. I leaned forwards, crossing my arms on my knees and resting my chin on them, smiling to myself. About halfway through practice, I snuck down the side of the stands to the field, when I was certain Isaac wasn't looking, and walked back to the main building to the l enough. I leaned forwards, crossing my arms on my knees and resting my chin on them, smiling to myself. About halfway through practice, I snuck down the side of the stands to the field, when I was certain Isaac wasn't looking, and walked back to the main building to the locker room. I sat down on the floor beside the door, leaning against the wall, as I took out my book and began to read, waiting for them to get backcker room. I sat down on the floor beside the door, leaning against the wall, as I took out my book and began to read, waiting for them to get back. A quarter of an hour later, I heard the clack of spiked trainers around the corner, and I hastily put my book away, standing up clumsily, before I composed myself. A clump of rowdy juniors appeared, Isaac somewhere amongst them. I frowned, upset, looking through the guys desperately, standing on tip-toe to try and see better.

'Isaac?' I called cautiously, knowing he could hear me if he was nearby. Sure enough, a moment later-

'Carrie?' I smiled happily as I heard his voice, and as the players filed into the locker room, Isaac was revealed, standing the other side of the doorway with an adorable if slightly gormless expression on his face. I grinned, walking towards him and throwing my arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. He staggered back a step or two, slightly bewildered, before his arms wound around me, one hand on the small of my back and one on my shoulder blades. One of my arms stayed securely around his neck, my other hand moved up to his hair, my fingers intertwining in his soft curls. Our lips and bodies moved in sync with one another, and I couldn't get over the feeling of safety I felt being in his arms, or just being near him, for that matter. He drew back a moment, resting his forehead on mine whilst we both caught our breath.

'So, I'm guessing the answer to my earlier question is yes?' He asked, and we laughed breathily, both of us grinning hugely. I held his face between my hands, my thumbs stroking his soft cheekbones absentmindedly, as I closed my eyes, my forehead still pressed to his and a wide smile on my face. His hands now both rested on the small of my back, our position more relaxed.

'I thought that was obvious.' I joked, and he chuckled, sliding his arms further around me. I opened my eyes and pulled my head back slightly, looking at the blue spheres that were Isaac's eyes, my chest growing warm pleasently, and I pulled his face back to mine, locking my lips with his once more. I'm not sure I'd ever felt as happy as I did in that moment.


End file.
